


Sic Vita Est

by ravenhead (socksy)



Category: Fate/Grand Order, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Character Development, Clusterfuck, Developing Relationship, Fluff, Gen, Multi, a bunch of hot mess adults try to be competent parents, bonus chapters, character exploration
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-04 17:30:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 1,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13369653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/socksy/pseuds/ravenhead
Summary: Bonus chapters for Refricare Cicatricem. Tones vary.





	1. Kick the Dog

The two Sabers regularly taking physical form had apparently encouraged the other Heroic Spirits to do so as well, gradually drawing out one by one until the halls of Chaldea were alive and bustling with activity.

Jack the Ripper and Nursery Rhyme chased each other up and down the halls, giggling madly. Nero and Tamamo no Mae lounged by the pool, chattering and gossiping. The nameless Archer griped about how many mouths he now had to feed, but the complaints seemed like more of a front, and the white-haired man could be heard humming softly as he glided around the massive kitchen.

Mordred was passing through the west wing when she saw her father again. She was talking to a tall man with dark hair- Mordred couldn’t hear the words she spoke but they didn’t sound unkind. The man seemed flustered, his ears turning red. Arturia tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, smiling back softly.

“Who’s this?” Mordred asked as she appeared behind her shoulder, snapping her gum in the most annoying way she could muster.

Arturia hesitated. Things were better between the two of them, but she wasn’t sure how Mordred would react to certain things, and new people in relation to her father was one of the unknowns.

“Someone from my past,” she replied carefully. “Be nice to him.” she added.

Mordred stared hard at the Irishman, seeming to size him up before kicking him hard in the shin.

 _We have a long way to go,_ Arturia thought to herself as Diarmuid crumpled to the ground.


	2. Chapter 2

Mordred lay sprawled on the couch in front of the TV, one leg hooked over the side. Arturia fussed with the teapot, checking its temperature.

Archer leaned through the doorframe and raised an eyebrow at Arturia. "I see you're finally getting along with your...daughter?"

"Son." both blondes corrected.

The man blinked. "I see," he responded flatly. "And that makes you her...mother?"

"Father." they responded in unison.

Archer threw his hands up, exasperated. "Dinner's on the table." he snapped before disappearing with a huff.

The duo collided in their scramble to get out the door.


	3. Chapter 3

"Sab- er, Arturia," came a whisper. The blonde in question turned towards Diarmuid, who was beckoning her over.

"What is it-" she began before being silenced with a hiss. The Lancer put a finger to his lips and nodded towards a pair standing on the other side of the indoor artificial garden.

Marie Antoinette had spotted Mordred and bounced up in her usual cheerful manner. The two were chatting - the white-haired girl seemed perfectly at ease, while Mordred seemed very interested in her feet, voice lowered to a mumble. The older pair craned their necks to eavesdrop.

“...And would you not honour my request to join me for a picnic?” Marie tilted her head, batting her lashes a few times.

Mordred straightened. “It is a knight’s duty to serve a lady.”

_"Merveilleux!"_ Marie clapped her hands. "Monsieur Archer made us 7 plates of cakes." The blonde knight's face went beet-red as the girl took her hand, leading her over to a blanket on the ground spread with an assortment of pastries and occupied by Robin Hood and Jeanne d'Arc, who smiled gently. Mordred was still looking at the dainty gloved hand that clasped her own calloused one.

Mordred shuffled her feet, looking almost shy before maneuvering down to the corner of the quilt. Her hunched shoulders relaxed as the group welcomed and made room for her.

Arturia stared after the unfolding scene. "What on Earth-"

Diarmuid chuckled. "Looks like Mordred has a crush."

Arturia spun her head to face him. "I- bu- she d-" she spluttered before gaping at the man in a very un-kingly manner.

"Have her home by 8!" he called after the group.


	4. Tribute

The last of 3 Wyverns gave a deafening shriek as it fell dead. The team of Servants stood back against the grassy hill as it crashed down, sending shockwaves through the ground.

These Daily Quests were getting boring.

Mordred's gaze trailed over to a pile of rubble that looked like what might have once been a fortress, long ago.

"Hey Doc," she called to the flickering blue holograph of Roman. "Where are we right now?"

"Coordinates say somewhere near Romania," the voice crackled back. "Why?"

Mordred had a strange look on her face. "Mind if I take a minute?"

The Master gestured her acceptance.

"Thanks." Mordred barely turned her head back as she made her way towards the crumbling structure and took a seat on the sturdiest-looking pile she could find.

Arturia watched as Mordred pulled out a cigarette and flicked it aflame. _(She didn't want to know where on Earth she had gotten such a thing, but the older blonde got the feeling that she needed to have a very serious discussion with someone once she returned.)_

Mordred sat for a moment, staring somewhere past the horizon. The cigarette dangled in her hand as she had a rare period of stillness, looking almost contemplative. She folded one leg up and rested her chin on her knee.

Arturia stood for a few minutes before coming over as well. She appeared at Mordred's side, head level with hers.

"Filthy habit," she nodded towards the cigarette.

Mordred took a small inhale from the rolled paper and tried not to cough. "Only done it once before." she forced out. "Just made me think of someone."

Arturia's lips flattened into a line. "I'd hate to know what else he taught you."

 _"Don't."_ the other interjected sharply. "He was the best, okay?"

Arturia gave a long nod. "I apologize." Mordred seemed appeased, and the pair held their position for a little while longer, each lost in their own thoughts.

"Hey," Mordred started. "Did you have fun?"

It was a strange question Arturia didn't understand. She could only assume Mordred was talking about the skirmish with a few dragons that had just begun and ended so shortly she wouldn't consider it a battle.

"I don't see how that could be referred to as such."

Mordred gave a brief exhale through her nose, sending puffs of smoke from each nostril. She unfolded herself and hopped down from her position. 

"Ready to head back?"

"Yeah," Mordred dropped the half-finished cigarette to the ground, extinguishing it with her foot.

"Let's go."


	5. Names

Cu summoned a few runes to float around him, then scoffed as they flickered and dissipated. He loathed his new Caster class, feeling the weight of his staff in his hand and longing for it to transform back into the familiar red spear.

“What do you want?” he asked the figure who was peering around the doorway behind him, thinking he'd been unaware of its presence.

Mordred took a step into view, taking in the dark room. “Just watching.”

The shining runes reappeared in the air between them, flying towards the blonde and rustling through her hair. Mordred jumped and shrank back, reaching for her sword.

“Easy, easy.” the man waved his hand as the symbols disappeared as quickly as they'd come. “Antsy, are ye?”

Mordred rubbed her shoulders where the runes had touched her. “I don't like magic.” She didn't explain further.

“Strange words, coming from the child of a witch.”

Mordred scoffed, turning away as she tried to look nonchalant. “Whatever.”

Cu leaned against his staff. “Can't say I care much for it either,” he admitted.

“Strange words coming from a Caster.”

That earned a wry chuckle. “I don't think I ever caught your name.”

"I never gave it. But it's Mordred," the blonde sounded like she was going to continue a detail of her lineage, which was no secret. _Son of Arthur, King of the Britons, defeater of the Saxons_ echoed in her throat. She closed her mouth, deciding to leave her introduction where it lay.

Cu raised an eyebrow. "That's it? Just Mordred?"

She squared her shoulders. "Isn't that enough?"

The man chuckled again. "It certainly is."

**Author's Note:**

> I actually finished all of these before I finished the main story, so I've had to wait to post them till now. Have a 5-chapter dump.


End file.
